Meghan Markle’s half-sister, Samantha Markle, recently said she was the “culprit” who urged their father to stage the photos in an ill-fated bid to improve his image. She said her father had “suffered at the hands of the media” and had decided “enough is enough.”

Before his operation, Thomas Markle had reportedly told TMZ he wanted to walk his daughter down the aisle.

“I hate the idea of missing one of the greatest moments in history and walking my daughter down the aisle,” he was quoted as saying.

Thomas Markle is a former lighting director who worked on popular TV shows “Married with Children” and “General Hospital,” according to the Internet Movie Database.

He met Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, at a Hollywood studio in the late ’70s and the pair split when their daughter was young.